Introduction:

Obesity and overweight are public health problems with important psychological and social consequences, such as weight stigma. According to WHO, 69% of adults with obesity experience stigma from health professionals. However, there are few studies on this stigma in Chile. People with a normal BMI tend to view those with obesity negatively, while those with obesity tend to be more compassionate towards others in the same situation, which reduces stigma.

Objective:

To relate nutritional status (BMI) and the level of weight stigma in university students of health careers in the region of Ñuble, Chile.

Methodology:

Observational cross-sectional design. The GAMS-27 scale was applied to assess weight stigma and BMI to evaluate the nutritional status of 156 students of health careers. Chi2 tests of independence and binary logistic regression were applied to evaluate the association between the variables, with the R statistical package version 4.3.0.

Results:

A statistically significant association was found between weight stigma and nutritional status (p=0.0145). Presenting normal BMI (p=0.0163) and being female (p=0.0156) were associated with a higher probability of presenting weight bias.

Conclusions:

The present study identified a statistically significant association between weight stigma and nutritional status in college students. It is vital to promote education regarding weight stigma in college students to avoid bias and improve respect for future users.

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